changing the education conversation

Archive for October, 2013

What does it take to learn? What is important to learn? And what’s the best way to deliver on this?

These are fundamental questions in education. Like any discovered truth, it’s often the case that different people come up with the same solution or idea because the truth is the truth- it’s there for anyone to discover.

A solid developmental approach to education is based on some fundamental ideas: that each person learns in their own way and in their own time, and that learning is really discovering. We know that all children/people take different amounts of time to learn the same thing and that learning is NOT about merely remembering. Some researchers have been finding this out too: in a 2011 study a researcher concluded, “The bottom line is, if you’re not the one controlling your learning, you’re not going to learn as well.” That’s because “knowledge isn’t a commodity that’s delivered from teacher to student but something that emerges from the students’ own curiosity-fueled exploration.”

The last part here is what Montessori’s developmental approach is built upon. It is the core of the Montessori approach – Dr. Montessori long ago recognized that learning is “constructed” not “recorded”. Other current research suggests that “kids given no instruction were much more likely to come up with novel solutions to a problem.” There is really no lack of evidence for the value of “learning by doing and discovering” over “teaching as telling”.

In today’s world this is increasingly important for all to understand because “innovation, creativity, and independent thinking are increasingly crucial to the global economy.” And you don’t learn these in a conventional school model.

If you find the above interesting you might enjoy the article it was based on, found here: